Card-file



W. L. DINSMOOR.

CARD FILE.

APPLICATION msn JuLY 30,1919.

1,340,757. Patented May 1s, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

/ WITNESSES y l /NVE/VTH ATTORI! Y6 /2 50 22 0 We@ 2a 2? 2 /2 w. L. DINSMQUR.

CARD FILE.

v APPLICATIONFILED JULY 3011919. 1,340,757. Patented May 18,' 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHE "2.

9 vw @i 5 7 J/ i d .hl -..-RKH

UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEroE.

WINFIELID L. DINSMOOR, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

GARD-FILE.

Application filed July 30, 1919.

To cZZfww/nf t may concer/ny Be'itiknown that l, lVrNEiELo L. Drive- Moon, a citizen ot' the UnitedStates, and a` resident of San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State ot California, have invented a new and Improved Card-File, ot' which' the iolloi'vin'g` is a description.

My invention relates to :tiling devices of the type in which spindles are employed to receive articles to be filed, and more particularly the invention has in view to produce a tile employing indexA cards on the spindles and so arranged as to provide a convenient'means .tor keeping a tile of business cards, such as the cards ot patrons collected byl business men, or the cards of the patients or clients oi professional men. My improved file, however, is adapted for other purposes, as 'for example, to hold calendar cards The invention applies particularly to 'a file havingfixed and relatively movable spindlesadapted to be juxtaposed at their upper ends and thus form arch members, or separated for the filing or removal of'cards or the like. The invention resides in the novel means for moving` and controllinej` the movable spindles.

leference is to be had to the accompanying'di'aivings forming' a part o'tthis specicatioin itbeing understood that the draw ings are merely illustrative ot one example ofthe invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view ot a iile embodying` my invention;

Fig. y2 is al longitudinal vertical section on the line\2-2, Fig.. 3';

Figi. is an inverted plan view with parts broken alwayand others partly, in section; v

Fig. L is a transverse vertical section on the line L-4,` Fig. 3;

F ig.' 5 is a detail in transverse vertical section of a punch employed for punching` the cards, the section being tal "i onthe line 5-5, Fig. 4.

In carryingout my invention I provide a suitablebase 10 constituting a table, and which is elevated by suitable means, there being shown for the purpose depending end flanges 11 to the lower ends of which tubular rubber cushions 12 are applied that the base may not mara desk top, for example. The table is adapted to support a series of index cards 13 having tabs as usual bearing in practice suitable symbols according to the character of the cards to be filed between the index cards. The index cards 13 Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May i8, 1920.

Serial No. 314,194.

are perforated at one end to receive arched` tiling spindles composed of fixed spindles 1l and relatively movable spindles 15, the upperends of the respective spindles lying in close relation when brought together to Jr'orm a continuous arched liling` device.

The movable spindles 15 extend downwardly through parallel longitudinal slots 18 in the table and are secured to a slide plate 1G by nuts 17 or other suitable moans. The lixed spindles lei pass through holes for the purpose in the plate i'n the table l() and through a b ar wash .r 19 and receive nuts 20 or the like, the bar washer being,` spaced :trom the under side of the table 1() by small washers 2l on each spindle 14, thereby producinga guiding space Jfor an arm which extends from the slide plate 16 at one end thereof. From the opposite end of the slide 16 aguide arm 23 extends into a slot 2l in the adjacent depending Vflange 11. At a side ot the slide 1G is an operating; handle arm 25, the outer end 26 ot which. is bent downwardly. Thus,` by grasping),` the handle arm 25, the slide 16 may be moved to separate thespindles 15 from the spindles 14- as indicated in dotted linesV in Fig. 2, the arm 23 passing through the opening 24. l provide spring` means to return the slide' after a separating` movement or' the spindles and latch means to hold the slide in position with the spindles thus separated. The latch 2T lies'at the under side of the slide 16 and isfpivoted near'one end thereto by a screw 28 or the like, to swing laterally. In a side of the latch 27 is a notch 29 which, when u the slidel 16' is moved to separate the spindles, is adapted to engage the flange 11 at an end of the opening' 2li.' A retractile spring 30 is connected with the slide Ithrough the medium of the latch 27, said springat one end engaging in a notch B1 on a lateral armV 31 of the latch, the spring` beingsecured at its opposite end to any iixed part of the base as at 32. The .latch extends at its outer end into the opening- 24 at all times so that the spring 30 can only swing the latch to the extent permitted by the notch 29 when the latter is "brought into register with the fla-nge 11Kat the opening` 24. and therefore the spring has both a tendency to swing the latch into the latchingl position and to retract the slide 16 after an outward movement of the latter. A lever arm 33 extends from the latch 27 at the opposite side from the spring 30. The said lever arm lies beneath the handle arm 25 of the slide so that both may be grasped at once. Y

It will be clear that when the slide is moved by its handle 25, the latch 27 is carried outwardly also and the spring 30 thus placed under tension. When the notch 29 of the latch arrives at the adjacent flange 11, the tension of the spring lswings the latch into latching position so that the slide is Vheld in the outer position with the spindles V15 thus maintained separated from the spindles 14. To permit the spring 30 to retract the slide the handle 25 and the lever arm 33 are grasped, thereby rocking the latch 27 to disengage the same and permit the spring to return the slide.

lith the described iile any desired number of index cardswith the karticles to be liled therebetween may be moved upwardly on the spindles 141 and downwardly onto the spindles 15, so that upon the separation of the spindles by movement of the slide 16, any desired business card or calendar card or the like between the business cards may be removed, or additional business cards or calendar cards may be placed on the spindle in proper locations between the index cards. The file is particularly intended for filing business cards which are punched to correspond with the index cards 13 to thereby be passed onto the spindles or removed therefrom. In order to punch the business cards l provide a punch 34 mounted on the table 10 at a side thereof. /The punch preferably involves two parallel spring-pressed punches 35 that may be depressed by the head 36, the said punches being in vertical alinement with holes 37 in the die 38 in the base of the punch. The punch is suitably mounted on the table 10 which has holes 39 registering with the holes 37 for the escape o1 the punched material to the under side of the base. A screw 40 is shown asone means for securing the punch to the table. The entrance slot 411 in the punch to receive a business card, for example, to be punched, is disposed laterally outward at a side of the table 10 so that the cardcan thus be conveniently passed into the punch. Thus.

by mounting the punch on the table and disposingthe entrance slot Al'thereof laterally outward at a side of the table, the punch is always conveniently available to punch kbusiness cards as they are collected to permit them to be properly led and preserved for reference.

'I would state in conclusion that while the illustrated example constitutes a practical embodiment of my invention, I do not limit myself strictly to the mechanical details herein illustrated, sincey manifestly the same can be yconsiderably varied without departure from the spirit of the invention as delined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I

claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A tile of the class described including a support, a tiling arch thereon composed of a iixed spindle and a relatively movable spindle,a slide on said support carrying the movable spindle, a pivoted latch carried onV said slide and adapted to engage'the support to hold the slide ywith the spindles separated, and a spring connected with said latch to retracty the slide by exerting its' force on the latch, said spring tending to swing the latch in a direction to effect engagement with the support. A

2. A filing device including a base, a liling arch formed or" a iixed and relatively movable spindle, a vslide carrying the movable spindle, a handled arm on the slide to move the latter for separating the spindle, a latch carried by the slide and pivoted thereber below the table, iiling arches consisting of a pair of spindles rising from the table Yand a second pair of relatively movable spindles extending through the slots of the table to the under side thereof, a slide at the under side of the table and carrying the movable spindles, an arm on said slide at one side, said depending4 member having an opening through which said arm isadapted to pass when theV slide isY moved toseparate the respective pairs of spindles, a laterally swingable latch carried by the` slide and having a notchV Vto engage the depending member of the base at-the opening therein, a lateral handle arm on the slide Vand projecting beyond the4 table ldor convenient grasping, a lever arm on the latch and Sextending beneath said lever and beyond-the table, and spring means acting onsaid-latch and tending to throw the same to the latching position.

wiNrinLn L. DrNsMooii. 

